Knitting machine



3 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Deo. 21, 1959 W. BRM

KNITTING MACHINE Nov. 7, 1961 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec.

Nov. 7, 1961 w. BRM 3,007,324

KNITTING MACHINE Filed Deo. 2l, 1959 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Nov. 7, 1961 3,007,324 KNTTING MACHINE Walter Brm, Dietikon, Zurich, Switzerland, assigner to Pal-Holding AAG., Zug, Switzerland, a corporation of Switzerland Filed Dec. 21, 1959, Ser. No. 861,129 Claims priority, application Switzerland Dec. 24, 1958 Claims. (Cl. 645-64) This invention relates to knitting machines of the type comprising at least one needle bed, a series of adjacent latch needles having butts of equal height which are displaceably mounted in the needle bed and a knitting lock which includes sets of cams deiining alternative needle paths and a switching cam system for selecting one of these paths in each direction of movement of the lock. Known knitting machines of this type have the disadvantage that the needles selected for each of the needle paths must be set in a particular initial position, which consumes valuable working time prior to each traverse of the lock.

Also there is no possibility of temporarily rendering individual needles incapable of knitting, as is required for certain patterns, or easily returning them other than manually to the initial position required to enable them to resume knitting.

The object of the invention is to provide a knitting machine of the above type such that these disadvantages are eliminated and such that certain needles can be rendered inoperative as indicated without resorting to complicated locks or to needles having butts of different height.

The invention provides a knitting machine of the above type comprising, behind each latch needle, a coaxially disposed freely movable jack and a jack lock including a cam for moving the jacks forward which cam is situated behind the switching cam system of a needle lock and so constructed that the jacks thrust forward by it move the associated needles `from a second path selected by the switching cam system to a iirst path.

The novel features which are considered characteristic of the invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, and additional objects and advantages thereof will best be understood from the following description of embodiments thereof when read in connection with the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. l is an underside plan view of the lock showing the needles and'jacks diagrammatically.

FIG. 2 is a section on the line b-b in FIG. l.

FIG. 3 is a section of a knitting machine and its locks the section being made at a right angle to the needle beds with the actuating mechanism for the switching Vcams of the needle lock omitted and iFlG. 4 is a view of a stripper looking in the direction ofthe arrow D in FIG. 3.

The drawing shows a knitting machine with a double needle bed and comprising a frame 1, not shown in detail, in which the needle bed plates 2, 3 are held at an angle to one another of about 90, the bent over lower edge 4 of one of two end plates 5 acting as a stop and being formed with a cut out and bent over portion 6 to abut against the edge 7 of a table. The angle between the two needle bed plates is advantageously between 60 and 150. AIdentical beds are provided on the bed plates 2 and 3 for the latch needles 8 and the jacks 9, lthe beds being provided with conventional guides 10, in each of which is freely slidable a needle 8 and, behind it, an associated and cooperating jack 9. The butts 11, 12 of the needles and jacks are of the same height and extend into the path of a knitting lock 13 and a jack lock 14 respectively, whose cams control the needles and jacks in the usual manner. The tracks of the knitting lock are deiined by needle retracting cams 15, 16 and 17, needle advancing cams 18-23 and spring loaded pivoted tongues 24 and 25. A cam 26 of the jack lock is divided into two `alternative advancing cams 26a and 26b. The needle advancing cams 18 to 20 and the needle retracting cams 15 to 17 are fixed, whereas the advancing cams 21 to 23 and the jack advancing cams 26a .and 2611 are movable in the direction perpendicular to the needle bed into and out of operative position. In FIG. 3, for clarity, the control mechanism for the movable cams of the needle lock is omitted, while that for the jack advancing cams 26a and 26b is shown; it consists of knobs 28, 29 carried 'by rods 32, 33 movable in sleeves 30, 31 to bring the cams into and out of operative position, the cam 2617 being out of the path of the butts 112. of the jacks when it is withdrawn into the inoperative position shown in FIG. 3.

The needle advancing cams 22, 23 act as switching cams and act as one-way blocking members when in their operative position. They consist of bent spring lamellae 35 attached to an operating knob 35 and have a bent forward edge 36 forming a cam surface which is inclined to the needles.

The two positions, of which that shown chain-dotted in HG. 2 is the operative position, are determined by a simple snap device 37. The spring lamella 3S is so Ibent that it may serve as a one way device that when, for example, in FIG. 2 the lock is moved from left to right the cam slides over the needle butt 11 without exerting any control action whereas in the case of movement of the lock in the other direction the inclined edge 36 strikes the needle butt 11 to ybe moved as the result of the inclination of the cam surface 36.

The cams in the needle lock provide, :always viewed in the same direction of movement of the lock, two needle paths of particular interest. Assuming a movement of the lock from right to left in FIG. l, one of these needle paths, indicated at A, extends yas follows with the switching cam 22 in operative position. A needle butt 11 strikes the inclined edge of .the switching cam '22, is lifted by it, runs along the advancing cam 18 and the tongue 24, and then passes via the retractiug cam 17 and past the open tongue 25 to the retracting cam 16.

The needle path indicated at B in FIG. l is rendered available by putting the switching cams 22 and 23 out of operation. The needle butts, in this position of the switching cams 22 and 23, do not reach the advancing cam 18 but pass behind it and, according as whether or not the advancing cam 21 is in operative position, either ride up it, travel along the fixed advancing cam Z0 and past the open tongue 25 to the retracting cam 16, or if the cam 21 is inoperative travel along a straight path, pressing the switching cam 23 out of their way, and leave the lock without being influenced by any advancing or reti-acting cams.

It follows that, according to the position of the switching cam 22 or, in the other direction of movement of the lock, of the switching cam 23, the needles can be caused to follow either path A or path B, the needles following path A being fully advanced while those following path B can only attain an intermediate position.

So far as concerns the jack lock 26, it will be suilcient at present to explain that the inclined, lateral advancing edges of the forward cam 26a lie behind the advancing edges of the switching cams of the needle lock, and reference will be made later to the arrangement and dimensions of the advancing edges of the cam 26a when the control of the jacks is explained. v

The cams of the needle lock 13 are mounted in a lock carrier 38 and those of the jack lock 14 are mounted in a lock carrier 39, the two lock carriers being joined by a common lock plate 40 to form a lock 41. The lock plate is bent over at its upper and lower edges and carries members 42 which slide in guide channels 43 on the needle bed so that the entire control lock can be moved to and fro over the associated needle bed at right angles to the needles by an actuating member, not shown. The two control locks 41 associated with the individual needle beds are joined by a member 44 so that they reciprocate together.

Fastened to the end of each needle bed is a knocking over comb 27, the two knocking over combs being at such a distance apart that there is space between them for a stripper 46 described below.

It would be possible to abstain from a permanent rigid connection of the needle lock to the jack lock and to fasten the two locks together detachably so that they can be moved independently at right angles to the needles and jacks respectively. Also in another modification of the construction illustrated the common bed for the needles and packs can be divided into separate beds for the needles and jacks, the jack bed being detachable from the needle bed. Finally the two needle beds can be detachably connected so that the knitting machine can be used at will as a single or a double bed machine.

On the lock plate 40 is fixed a carrier 45 for a stripper 46, which carrier can be connected by a screw 47 to a support 48 of the stripper 46. The stripper 46 itself consists of two connected two armed stirrups 50 and a spacer 49 interposed therebetween the limbs of the stirrups being indicated at 51 and 52. The free ends 51a and Slb of these limbs are rounded (see FlG. 4) and continue into straight resilient free ends Slo and 52C to form a stripper plough. The angle at which the ends 51C and 52C are bent and the position of stops 56a and 56b are such that the ends 51C and 52C, when in the operative position (shown at the left hand side of FIG. 4), are at least approximately parallel to the needle bed whereas the resilient end of the inoperative limb 52 (at the right hand side of FIG. 4) is swung upwardly to an extent sulicient to avoid touching the knitted fabric and the associated knocking over comb 27.

The stripper 46 can rock in relation to the support 48 on a bolt 54, the support being bent at an angle such that the stripper lies in the plane bisecting the angle formed by the planes of the needle beds. The rocking movement of the stripper is limited in both directions by stops 56a and Sb. The bent ends 51a and 52a forming the stripper plough are resilient, compression springs 55 being disposed between the corresponding ends of the stirrups for urging them apart so that the ploughlike rounded portions Slb and 52b and in particular the straight portions 51a and 52b are maintained in contact with the knocking over comb 27 of one of the needle beds.

It is also possible to provide between the corresponding resilient ends 51e, 52C of the two stirrups 50 a regulating device which permits of adjustment of the pressure of the springs 55 and therefore the extent of splaying of said ends to suit the prevailing conditions of operation.

Between the limbs 51, 52 of one of the stirrups 50 is mounted by a carrier 57 a brush 58 so arranged that its bristles are in contact with the knocking over comb 27 at the working side of the stripper.

The stripper 46 occupies the position of FIG. 4 when the control lock is moved from right to left as seen in that ligure. The bent portion 51b of both stirrups then act to push down the stitches while the straight ends 51C hold back the stitches. On reversal of the direction of movement of the lock, the stripper is rocked clockwise as seen in FIG. 4 as the result of the friction of the ends 51e on the knocking over comb 27 and in particular by the bristles 58 engaging in one of the combs, so that the limbs 52 now are in the operative position and the limbs 51 in the inoperative position. The rocking movement is limited by the stop 56h which ensures that the stripper in this new direction of movement of the lock will occupy the correct position in which the rounded parts 52b act to press down the stitches and the straight parts 52e to hold back the stitches.

The jacks and their associated needles cooperate as follows:

When knitting patterns it is necessary to use only certain of the needles for the actual knitting. These needles 8a will be referred to henceforth as knitting needles. Of the remaining needles some act as holding needles 8b, i.e. needles which do not form stitches but merely hold stitches. It is particularly necessary not to position these holding needles 8b in the forward rest position in front of the comb in the lock because this would render impossible the use of a stripper as described above. With certain patterns, moreover, it is necessary to leave certain needles 8c temporarily in a rearward position so that a tensioned yarn is formed in front of these needles at the knocking over comb. Also it may be required to withdraw certain needles entirely from participation'in the knitting while retaining the pattern combination of the lock.

These are only a few examples of the various forms of control of the needles required for knitting patterns and which are attainable by the machine illustrated. The most important is switching of the knitting needles 8a into the path A despite the fact that the switching cams 22 and 23 are inoperative.

According to one of the possible variants the control is such that the jacks 9a associated with the knitting needles 3a, which occupy the position I (FIG. l) and are therefore within the range of action of the jack cam 26a are pushed forward, while the other jacks in the position Il or lli i.e. outside the range of action of the cam 26a remain retracted. If the switch cam 22 and the jack cam 2Gb are in their inoperative positions and the remaining cams are in their operative positions and if the lock is moved from right to left in FIG. l, without the jacks all the needle butts would follow the path B. The jacks 9a, however, are pushed forwardly by the jack cam 26 at the point of branching of the paths A and B suiciently to bring them into the range of action of the needle advancing cam 18 and thence they follow the path A. Certain of the needles are therefore switched by their jacks in position I from the path B, which they normally follow when the switch cams are inoperative, to the path A and as the result those knitting needles 8a undergo the control required for knitting, while the butts of the holding needles 8b, as the result of the positioning of their jacks 8b, follow the path b and are so debarred from knitting since they do not advance to the forward working position; all the needles 8a and 8b being returned to their initial positions after the lock has passed them and the needles 8a returning their jacks 9a to position I.

Other variants of the above control of the knitting needles 8a or their butts are utilized in particular when knitting Jacquard patterns and are distinguished from that just described in that the needle advancing cam 21 is raised to its inoperative position. The switching of the needles 8a is effected as above by reason of the associated jacks being placed in position I so that they are advanced by the cam 26a and switch the associated needles to path A while the other needles, insofar as they are not in position IV, are unintluenced by any cams and remain in their original positions during traverse of the lock so that tensioned threads are formed at the knocking over comb in front of these needles. If these pattern courses are to be repeated, the needle advancing earn .23 must of course also be raised to its inoperative pos1t1on.

If'certain of the needles 8a are not to participate in knitting for a certain time, these needles are placed in position IV where their butts are out of the range of action of the needle lock cams. Tensioned threads are therefore formed at the knocking over comb in front of these needles or the associated stitch is transferred to a needle of the other bed.

To utilize such needles as knitting needles during the following movement of the lock it is suicient to shift the associated jacks 9a to position II (insofar as they are not already there) and also to lower the lock cam 26h to the operative position, whereby the corresponding needles 8c are advanced by their jacks and switched to path A and so once more participate in knitting. Unwanted jacks are retracted to position III in which they are outside the range of action of the jack cams, the rear of the jack lock being provided for this purpose with a channel 60 affording free passage of the butts of the jacks which are not required yfor use and are fully retracted. The jacks are set to one or other of positions I to III by a conventional rule.

By the above described cooperation of the needles and jacks on the one hand and by selective activity of the cams on the other hand it is possible to meet practically all requirements as regards movement of the needles for the knitting of patterns, and there is also the possibility of utilizing a stripper which is effective to press down and to hold back the stitches.

I claim:

l. A knitting machine comprising two needle beds placed at an angle and having neighboring marginal portions, each bed having a plurality of needle guides, latch needles individually placed in said guides and having latch ends adapted to protrude from said marginal portions, a lock means placed on each needle bed and being movable on the respective bed in a direction normal to the longitudinal axes of said needles, each lockmeans including cams for' actuating said needles upon movement of said lock means in one or in the opposite direction, a knocking over comb connected to each of said marginal portions of said needle beds, said lock means being rigidly interconnected, said combs being parallel and spaced, and a stripper sWingably supported by said lock means to swing between two extreme positions, said stripper including two opposed parallel and spaced stiriup-like members, each of said members having two diverging limbs individually having an inwardly bent substantially straight end portion, said end portions of one of said stirrup members being adapted to individually slidably engage one of said combs and the end portions of the other of said stirrup members being adapted to individually slidably engage the other of said combs, depending on whether said stripper is swung to one or the other of its eXtreme positions.

2. A knitting machine as defined in claim 1 wherein said end portions, when in the position engaging said combs, are substantially parallel to said combs.

3. A knitting machine as delined in claim l wherein said end portions are resilient for resiliently pressing said end portions against said combs.

4. A knitting machine as defined in claim 1 including resilient means interposed between opposed end portions of said stirrup-like members for urging said end portions apart and against said combs.

5. A knitting machine as defined in claim l Iwherein said stripper is detachably connected to said lock means.

References Cited in the iile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,534,973 Leviton et al. Apr. 21, 1925 1,676,947 Frazier July 10, 1928 1,899,838 Vollenweider Feb. 28, 1933 1,992,982 Zippel Mar. 5, 1935 2,004,699 Krautkopf June l1, 1935 2,025,499 Diem Dec. 24, 1935 2,059,682 Diem Nov. 3, 1936 2,705,408 Mehnert Apr. 5, 1955 

